


What Makes A Good Person

by congressmanmabel



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Canon Divergence - The Last Mabelcorn, Family, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Protective Dipper Pines, Self-Worth Issues, cartoon violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-13
Updated: 2017-06-13
Packaged: 2018-11-13 19:01:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11191383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/congressmanmabel/pseuds/congressmanmabel
Summary: Instead of going down to Ford's study, Dipper decides to accompany Mabel on her quest to retrieve the unicorn hair, thinking it would be an easy mission. But when the Celestabellebethabelle dismisses Mabel as not pure of heart, Dipper reaches his breaking point.





	What Makes A Good Person

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this fic as a positive response to this lovely tumblr post by @llttledipper:
> 
> "Dipper couldn’t be with Mabel in tlm cause he would’ve went tf off when those unicorns said she wasn’t a good person, fuckin decked them .3 seconds after they made her cry, and then reassured her that it’s okay to make mistakes and not be perfect it doesn’t make her any less of a good person and the episode would’ve only been like 8 minutes long"
> 
> Please Read and Review! Enjoy!

Dipper and Mabel were planning on having a day off from the paranormal conspiracies and shenanigans surrounding Gravity Falls. They previously decided to play some fun, albeit ‘normal’ board games from Grunkle Stan’s collection. But their plans were put on the backburner when their Grunkle Ford called for a sudden family meeting in the living room. Knowing Ford’s association with the darker side of Gravity Falls’s supernatural happenings, the twins knew that he meant business.  

When Mabel and Dipper arrived in the living room, they noticed Ford already had his props on display. His leather bag, which was most likely used for research, sat on the table and Ford himself was reading one of his journals while having several scrolls tucked under his arm. The elderly researcher turned around and immediately noticed the niblings, prompting him to put his scrolls on the table alongside his bag.

“Ah, children. Come in, come in!” He politely greeted the kids.

Mabel immediately took a seat next to her great uncle and eagerly inspected the inside of his worn leather bag perched on the table. “Ooh, mysterious scrolls and potions! Are you going to tell us we're finally of age to go to wizard school?” 

She started to rummage through the bag excitedly. “Is there an owl in this bag?”

Ford frowned as he snatched the bag away from her.  “No! I can assure you if there's an owl in this bag, he's long dead.” He dismissed, much to Mabel’s dismay.

Ford held up an old scroll and unfurled it before the niblings’ very eyes. “Now, children, do either of you recognize this symbol?” Once the scroll fell open, Dipper and Mabel immediately spotted the sinister image of Bill and many hieroglyphs emblazoned on the parchment.

Dipper and Mabel gasped at the archaic image of the dream demon.

“Bill…” Dipper muttered darkly.

Ford was surprised by the twins’ reaction to the emblem. The fact that the twins knew of Bill greatly worried him. “You- you know him?”

“Know him? He's been terrorizing us all summer!” Dipper exclaimed. “I have so many questions and theories…”

“Dipper's been pretty paranoid since Bill turned him into a living sock puppet.” Mabel added.

“The important thing is we defeated him twice.” Dipper affirmed with seriousness.

“Once with kittens and once with tickles!”

“It was a lot more heroic than it sounds.”

Ford stared at his beloved niblings, astonished at the revelation that these precious kids had defeated Bill not once, but twice! Although he was upset that the dream demon was an immediate threat to his family, he was relieved that his niece and nephew were highly capable of relinquishing that monster. As much as he wanted to shower praise and familial affection onto his niece and nephew, there were more dire matters to be discussed.

“The fact that you've dealt with Bill is gravely serious.” He stated.

“So, how do you know Bill?” Dipper inquired.

“I've encountered many dark beings in my time, Dipper,” Ford explained. “What matters is that his powers are growing stronger, and if he pulls off his plans, no one in this family will be safe!”

Mabel gasped as she worriedly glanced at her brother.

Ford spread out another scrolled parchment and took out his pen.“Fortunately, there should be a way to shield us from his mental tricks. A way to Bill-proof the Shack.” Ford explained as he drew a map of his lab. “All I have to do is place moonstones here, here, and here, sprinkle some mercury, let's see... I always forget the last ingredient!”

Taking out Journal 1, Ford flipped through his coveted book in search of the final piece of his Bill-proofing recipe. Upon finding the page, he groaned with great disappointment. “Ugh, unicorn hair.”

“That's not, like, rare, is it?” Dipper asked in a befuddled tone.

Ford sighed, taking out Journal number one. “It's hopeless. Unicorns reside deep within an enchanted glade, and their hairs can only be obtained by a pure good-hearted person who goes on a magical quest to find them.”

Mabel screamed for joy, gaining Ford and Dipper’s attention. “Grunkle Ford, can I please go on this quest? I am literally obsessed with unicorns! My first word was ‘unicorn’, I once made my own unicorn by taping a traffic cone to a horse's head. Are you even looking at the sweater I'm wearing right now?! Not to mention that I'm probably the most pure of heart person in this room.”

 Dipper and Ford agreed with Mabel’s statement.

“That's true, she has a point.”

“I can't argue there.”

Mabel stood up with sheer determination. “So can I go on a mission to get that hair? Please please, please? I'LL GIVE YOU MY BLOOD!”

“I’ll go with just in case,” Dipper added almost instantly as he got up from his seat.

Mabel beamed at her twin. “You’d do that bro-bro?”

“Of course,” Dipper replied without hesitation. “Unicorns may not be my thing, but I bet the journey would be as fun as the destination.”

Mabel tackled her brother with a loving embrace, almost knocking him off his feet. "We're gonna have so much fun!!!" She squealed joyfully. Dipper chuckled as he was swept up by his sibling’s affectionate form of gratitude.

Ford looked on at the twins with a sad smile. He wished he could tell the twins about his previous encounters with those frustrating unicorns, and inform Dipper of his backup plan to protect their minds from Bill with the mind-reading machine stowed away in his study. But seeing how happy his niece and nephew were together, he didn’t have it in his heart to rain on their parade.

“Very well. But it won't be easy.” He offered Journal 1 to Mabel, her eyes widened as her Grunkle gave his book to her. “Take this.” Ford also gave his trusty crossbow to his niece. “And this.”

Mabel’s eyes widened as she was given two of Ford’s valued possessions. “Oooh!”

 Dipper smiled at Mabel’s reaction. Over the past week, Dipper was worried about Mabel not spending enough time with Ford. Whenever Dipper bonded with Ford, he couldn’t help notice the similarities he had with his sister; their bold confidence, their sheer excitement over sharing their favorite hobbies with him, the fact that they sport sweaters despite the blazing summer heat. Now that Mabel had reached out to Ford and he was willing to let her help him, Dipper was glad that they were interacting with each other.

“I haven't been in this dimension for a while. It's okay to give children weapons, right?” Ford asked his niblings.

Mabel gave Ford a reassured look. “Pssh, come on, dawg.” Unfortunately, the girl accidentally fired an arrow from the crossbow, launching it through the front door window and setting off Stan’s car alarm.

“AH! IT'S THE COPS! GUN IT!” Stan shouted as the other car drove off from the Pines residence.

“And Dipper,”

The preteen looked to his great uncle, who had his hand in his coat pocket. The old man retrieved a giant pair of scissors and gently handed it to his nephew.

“Take this, my boy. I’m certain you’ll use it to properly cut the unicorn’s hair.”

Dipper was also starstruck when Ford handed him the important item. “O-of course Great Uncle Ford.” Dipper responded.

Just as Dipper placed the scissors in his vest pocket, Mabel wrapped her arm around him. “Onwards to our fantastical quest!!” The upbeat girl declared as she led the charge out of the living room.

“We’ll get the unicorn hair for you Great Uncle Ford!” Dipper promised.

The grey-haired scientist gave his children a warm smile as he waved his hand. “Have fun storming the glade children.”

As soon as Mabel and Dipper stepped outside they began to tread towards the forest trail. But before they were able to leave the property Grunkle Stan immediately noticed his niece and nephew armed with weapons that were no doubt from Ford's collection. 

"Mabel sweetie," Stan hollered. "you weren’t the one who shot an arrow at my colleague’s car, right?"

“Uh, no...” Mabel replied with a nervous smile as she guiltily hid the crossbow behind her back.

Stan sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Okay kiddos, so what scheme are you two tryin’ to pull off that requires a crossbow?” He asked.

“Grunkle Ford sent us on a quest to retrieve unicorn hair!” Mabel proclaimed in dramatic fashion.

“It’s super important in protecting our family from the dark supernatural forces,” Dipper explained articulately. 

Stan frowned. As much as he didn’t want the kids getting into any trouble for Ford’s sake, they did seem enthusiastic about running a dangerous errand for him.

The old con man sighed. “Alright, you kids can go on your quest or whatever. But just promise me you two won’t get hurt, okay?”

“Okay!” The twins chorused.

The kids immediately set off their course, sprinting past from the front yard, through the threshold of the forest to begin their extraordinary expedition.

Mabel whipped up her cell phone from her skirt pocket. “I’m gonna inform the girls about the adventure of a lifetime!”

“Since this is a more female-oriented trip, would it be cool if I called up Pacifica to join us?” Dipper asked.

“Of course! The more the merrier!!”

“Yes!”

Just as Dipper got out his cell phone to text Pacifica, Mabel retrieved her phone to discuss the matter with her gal pals. “Candy, Grenda, Wendy, clear the afternoon!”

* * *

In the depths of the forest, a band of young adventurers traveled through the off-beaten path in search for the enchanted glade.

“It's nice to finally be out on a mission, just us gals!” Mabel piped up. “And Dipper of course.”

“Forget the gal talk!” Grenda interrupted. “I'm here to meet, touch, and/or become a unicorn!”

“I hear if you lick a unicorn's neck, it tastes like your favorite flavor in the world!” Candy said enthusiastically.

Mabel wrapped her arm around Candy, pulling her closer. “I will make sure you lick that unicorn's neck because I care about my friends.”

Wendy Corduroy used her ax to cut through the brush of tree branches that blocked their path. “Honestly, I stopped believing in unicorns when I was like, five years old. I'm just coming along to keep you kids from walking into a bear trap.”

“Thanks for the invite,” Pacifica spoke to Dipper. “Whether this trip will be a success or a fluke, spending time with you and your ragtag team of dorks certainly beats having to deal with my parents.”

“Of course Pacifica,” Dipper responded.  “and if you need me to give your dad a good punch in the face just say the word.” Pacifica wordlessly nodded, grateful for having a friend who cared for her well-being.

“Stop!” Mabel shouted. “This is the magic part of the forest.”

She opened up Journal 1 and found the page on the enchanted part of the forest. “Let's see, the gnome tavern is over there, the fairy nail salon is over there, but it says that to summon the unicorn, one must bellow this ancient chant droned only by the deepest-voiced druids of old.”

“On it!” Grenda immediately swiped the journal and rushed toward the open field. She looked at the book and cleared her throat before beginning the chant.

_“Oy-oyoy-oyoyoyoy…”_

Wendy looked at the forest clearing with great skepticism. “I bet you ten bucks nothing happens.”

“I'll take that bet,” Mabel noted.

Suddenly, there was a violent rumbling from below. A mound of dirt arose from the ground before descending back to the soil. A secret fortress of stone and a jeweled gate appeared before the young group. The astonished gang decided to enter it. Their eyes grew even wider upon glancing at the interior of the fortress.

“The paintings airbrushed on the sides of vans were true!” Mabel gasped.

“I can definitely see where Peter S. Beagle got the inspiration for his fantasy novel,” Pacifica added.

As the kids awed at the whimsical scene unfolding before them, a majestic white unicorn with rainbow-colored hair appeared out of the flight of purple butterflies. The unicorn perched on a boulder next to a running lake below a sparkling rainbow. The enchanted equine let out a gentle neigh.

“Mother of mothers!” Grenda shouted.

“Queen of dreams!” Candy shouted as well.

“The most celestial equine I’ve ever seen!” Pacifica declared.

“No way.” Wendy and Dipper muttered in near unison.

Mabel reached her hand up towards Wendy, making a grabbing gesture. “Eh, eh.” Wendy sighed. She remembered the bet she made with the twelve-year-old and handed the ten-dollar bill to Mabel in defeat.

The gang continued to gawk at the beautiful unicorn while a faun practiced on the pan flute on a nearby boulder. The unicorn reared her head towards the humans.

“Hark! Visitors to my realm of enchantment!” The unicorn proclaimed.

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh!” Mabel shrieked. “What's your name?”

“I am Celestabellebethabelle, last of my kind. Come in, come in. Just, take off your shoes. I have a whole thing about shoes.”

Candy, Grenda, Mabel, and Pacifica proceeded to take off their shoes in an obedient manner. While the four preteen girls heeded the unicorns order, Wendy and Dipper refused to listen to the majestic equine as they walked behind the group. 

“Ah, ah! I'm talking to everyone!” Celestabellebethabelle commanded, singling out the two rebels. The redhead and the preteen boy groaned to themselves while grudgingly removing their footwear.

Mabel humbly walked towards the unicorn.“Celestabellebethabelle, we have journeyed far and wide--”

“About an hour!” Grenda corrected.

“On a mission to protect our family with your magical hair!” Mabel finished.

Meanwhile, Candy silently stood next to Celestabellebethabelle “This is your chance, Candy. Lick the neck. Lick it…” The bespectacled girl attempted to lick the equine’s neck in hopes that the rumors were true. But the unicorn lifted her head, stopping Candy in her tracks.

“Very well. To receive a lock of my enchanted hair, step forth, girl of pure perfect heart.” Celestabellebethabelle declared.

Dipper, Pacifica, Wendy, and Grenda nodded at Mabel, encouraging her to approach the unicorn.

Mabel eagerly stepped forward to receive her just reward from her life-long idol. “Presenting: _bum_ buh _da_ bum bum _ba_ bum bum _!_ ” She approached the spotlight and knelt to heighten the dramatic flair.   _“Mabel!!!”_

“What? You?” Celestabellebethabelle said mockingly, causing Mabel to frown in disbelief.  “A unicorn can see deep inside your heart, child.” The enchanted equine pointed her glowing horn at Mabel, shining a heart on her chest while casting a dark shadow upon the rest of her sweater. Mabel looked down at her chest and immediately covered herself. “Whoa!” The preteen looked distressed as she stared back at the unicorn.

“And you have done wrong. WRONG I say!” The unicorn shouted angrily.

Mabel stood speechless. Sure she had made mistakes in the past, but she didn’t think that her past actions would upset her favorite mythical creature.

_“WHAT?!”_

Mabel and the unicorn turned to see an angry Dipper marching up towards them, wearing a sour frown on his face. The preteen stopped beside his sister in an act of solidarity. “Who the heck are you to judge someone’s character?!” Dipper yelled at the unicorn.

“She’s not entirely wrong Dipper..” Mabel sadly argued. Just as Dipper turned to face his sister, his stomach dropped to see her so downtrodden and somber.

“I mean, I guess I’ve made fun of you a lot. And I did just shatter a window with a crossbow.” She explained while trying to fight off the tears that began to surface.

“Your bad deeds make me cry.” Celestabellebethabelle whimpered. Her eyes well up, and a rainbow tear drop landed on a flower, burning it to a crisp before falling over.

“NOOO!” Mabel screamed in fear. Tears began to spill down the girl’s cheeks. Dipper was worried for his sister. She did not do anything to deserve such poor treatment. The unicorn had the gall to look uninterested at the girl’s turmoil, vouching to lift her head in a high-and-mighty manner. Dipper’s eyes zeroed in on the unicorn with unbridled rage.

“Come back when you're PURE OF HEART. NEEEIIGGGHH!”

“No way man!” Dipper refused as he continued to stare bullets into Celestabellebethabelle’s lack of a soul. He gritted his teeth with anger at the pretentious unicorn who shattered his sister’s self-image. That horned horse was going to pay for what she did.

The unicorn gasped. “How dare you, you puny litt-”

“Oh no, you don’t get to play the victim here!” He growled, pointing an accusatory finger at the malevolent unicorn. “You hurt my sister’s feelings despite her polite request to retrieve some of your hair, which she was going to use to save her family from unspeakable harm.”

Celestabellebethabelle ignored Dipper’s argument and simply tossed her mane to the side as though she did nothing wrong.“But the not-pure-of-heart admitted her heinous crime of teasing you!”

“So what?” Dipper spat. “So Mabel and I tease each other from time to time, big deal! It’s normal for siblings to mess around with each other every now and then, but we always make up at the end of the day! And sure Mabel has made some mistakes in the past, but she’s still a good person in my eyes! I've known my sister for all my life and I know that she would never do wrong out of intent!! And seeing how misinformed you are on basic human behaviors, tons of people have messed up, but it's a completely normal thing for people to do! And the mistakes a person has made in the past and subsequently learned from, should not define them for who they are! So who are you to judge?!”

“Mabel’s the friendliest person I’ve met,” Pacifica yelled as she stood beside Dipper. “and she introduced me to the concept of sharing!”

“And Mabel befriended us in our time of need.” Candy defended.

“Yeah! And she appreciates us for who we are!” Grenda added.

“She’s a great person who wants to make others feel great!” Wendy snapped at Celestabellebethabelle.

Mabel wiped her tears away as she looked at the others. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Despite being branded as a sinner by the all-powerful unicorn, her brother and her friends were defending her regardless of her past mistakes. Mabel was struck speechless by their kind words about her.

“So we ask you again, _politely_ , on behalf of my sister and my family, that you let us have a bit of your hair,” Dipper commanded.

“And if I refuse?” The unicorn cockily responded.

“Then you give me no other choice…” Dipper answered darkly.

The unicorn scoffed at the preteen. “Ha! I’d like to see tha-”

Dipper used a mean left-hook to deck the enchanted beast’s face, giving her a black eye. While Celestabellebethabelle reacted to the painful punch, Dipper immediately grabbed a hold of her neck, retrieved the scissors from his vest pocket and began cutting off the equine’s hair. He was quick to shear all of Celestabellebethabelle’s mane. Dipper then took out the sack from his vest pocket. The unicorn whinnied in terror upon having her precious hair stolen, alarming Dipper and causing him to drop the sack, the scissors and the thick strands of unicorn hair.

“Mabel! The bag!”

Mabel nodded at her twin. She retrieved the plain sack and took the magical hair, stuffing it inside. The unicorn began to violently stomp across the fortress, causing Dipper latch onto the equine’s neck.

“Dipper!!” Mabel cried out. She was immediately up on her feet, breaking into a sprint to keep up with the rampaging equine. The other girls followed suit.

The unicorn galloped around the interior of her domain in a horrific frenzy, but Dipper kept a stronghold around her neck.

“You defiled my mane, you rotten ruffian!” The unicorn scowled.

“That’s what you get for messing with my sister!” Dipper angrily argued.  

“Hey, what’s goin’ on here?!”

Everyone turned to find two other unicorns, a red one, and a blue one arrived at the scene with confused expressions on their faces. Celestabellebethabelle stopped in mid-gallop, throwing Dipper off of her. Fortunately for the boy, Wendy managed to catch her younger friend before he could make a painful impact on the grass.

“Woah, nice haircut you got there C-Beth.” The blue horse said sarcastically at his companion.

The white unicorn turned away, embarrassed by her colleague's remark. “Shut up you jerk!”

“Wait a minute,” Wendy spoke up as she placed the young Pines boy back on his feet. “If we cut off more unicorn hair does that mean that its magic powers would intensify or whatever?”

“Probably,” Dipper answered with a shrug.

The red and blue unicorn exchanged frightened glances, thinking of a way to not share the same fate as Celestabellebethabelle. Pacifica retrieved the scissors and Wendy took out her ax. Candy and Grenda tightened their fists. Mabel stood beside Dipper, giving him a determined smile before viewing their targets. The gang of humans bellowed a fiery battle cry as they stormed towards the two unicorns, intending to cut their hair.

“Wait!!” The red unicorn shouted, but it was too late.

The kids unleashed their reckless fury upon the unicorns. Grenda pummeled the blue unicorn to the ground. Mabel, Dipper, and Candy forced their weight onto the equine so it could remain on the grass. The unicorn tried to get up but froze in fear when he saw Pacifica with the scissors. The blonde girl quickly severed large, thick strands from the unicorn’s neck. Grenda quickly ripped the unicorn’s eyelashes. The mythical beast let out a terrified whinny.

Wendy jumped onto the red unicorn’s back. After holding herself steady, she took hold of his mane and, with one swing from her ax, gave him a clean shave. The unicorn neighed in fear, prompting Wendy to jump off before any harm could befall her.

Once the kids were finished with stealing the hair from the blue unicorn, they noticed Celestabellebethabelle fiercely galloping towards them. Mabel decided to act quickly on behalf of her friends. The sweatered girl ran towards the white unicorn and punched her square in the nose, causing the equine to bleed rainbow blood. Mabel grinned smugly at her hurt enemy.

_“Humans!!”_

Everyone ceased their fighting. The gang of kids, now covered in unicorn fluids, turned around to face the injured and shaven blue equine.

The blue unicorn slowly lifted his head.  “A-alright humans...so what’s your opinion on treasure?”

The gang of young people looked at each other with equal bewilderment before Mabel spoke up. “What kind of treasure are we talking about here?”

“Like, uh...gold! And jewels! Like a whole treasure chest full of ‘em!” The blue unicorn answered nervously.

“Yeah!” The red unicorn glowed his horn, causing sweet rave music to play. The catchy electronic tune summoned a large boulder from the underneath the waterfall, which held an open treasure chest. The kids stared at the enormous pile of doubloons, jewelry, sugar cubes, hoof polish, sparking apples, a special edition Man-Horse Calendar and other priceless gems.

“We can give you all this treasure so long as you never come here again!” The red unicorn pleaded.

The kids huddled together and talked amongst themselves. After a few moments of discussion, Dipper and Mabel stepped forward to speak for their group.

“Alright, we’ll accept your offer.” Mabel declared.

“We already have a sufficient amount of unicorn hair to protect our family anyways,” Dipper added. 

The three unicorns sighed in relief.

“Good, now grab your loot and get off of our property.”

* * *

The gang of youngsters left the glade, traveling through the forest with their newly acquired possessions. Mabel was a few feet ahead of the pack with a handful of unicorn hair while Dipper followed after her, carrying the bag full of hair. Wendy held onto her axe in case any intruders were to encroach them. Candy and Grenda lifted the treasure chest while Pacifica held onto the horse-related prizes. The gang may have gotten more than what they bargained for in terms of material wealth, but that did not erase the unpleasant reality of the true nature of unicorns.

“Talk about disappointing.” Candy spoke up. “I bet their neck’s tasted as terrible as their personalities.”

“I can’t believe all those movies and TV shows lied to us!” Grenda added gruffly.

“I’m sorry for wasting your time, you guys.” Mabel sighed, trudging away from the path. She stopped at the near the small pond and sat down, curling herself up into a ball.

The gang quickly proceeded to follow the melancholic girl but gave her enough space so not to overwhelm her. “Mabel?” Wendy called out to her.  

Mabel said nothing. Somber silence filled the air.

Dipper winced at the sight of an unresponsive Mabel. It pained him to see her in such a sorrowful state. The Pines boy started to walk to where Mabel was sitting, wanting to lift his sister's spirits

Dipper crouched down on the grass and scooted closer towards his sister. He placed a soft hand on her shoulder and began to speak softly. “Hey, you know all that stuff that lame unicorn said was complete malarkey, right?”

Mabel turned to see her brother comforting him. She knew that he was right, but somehow that did not erase the pangs of sadness that filled her core. The preteen girl glumly glanced downwards.

“I know...it’s just all my life I thought I was being a good person. Being kind and sweet is what makes me who I am...If I’m not a good person, then who am I.”

Mabel couldn’t force herself to face her brother and her female friends, afraid that her confession would change their opinion of her. Instead, she shifted her view towards the pristine pond. But she was immediately pulled into a loving embrace. She instinctively knew that the person who held her close in a protective hug was none other than Dipper.

“You’re my sister and my best friend.” He told her with adamant honesty.

Mabel buried her head in her brother’s shoulders while squeezing him tighter.

Dipper smiled as he continued to speak. “You don’t have to reach ridiculously high standards or be ‘pure-of-heart’ to be a good person Mabel. It’s okay to make mistakes and it doesn’t make you any less of a good person. The love you have for your family and friends and the actions you do for them are what make you great Mabel.”

She listened to Dipper’s genuine speech with open ears and tearful eyes. Mabel soon felt more arms pulling her into comfort. Lifting her head up, she saw Candy, Grenda, Wendy and even Pacifica circling around her and Dipper for a powerful group hug. They all muttered words of reassurance to her, certifying how much they truly cared for her. Mabel hugged her friends as tightly as she could.

“Thanks you guys.”

* * *

The gang arrived back at the Mystery Shack with their treasures in tow. When they entered the living room, they noticed Ford busily scribbling on his scroll while Stan fell asleep in the armchair. The sound of multiple footsteps alerted the two old twins of the gang’s presence.

“Children! You’ve returned!” Ford greeted them.

Stan was startled from his sleep. On any other occasion, he would be annoyed for having been robbed of his mid-day nap, but the sight of an antiquated treasure chest filled with priceless gold prompted him to spring upwards on his feet.

“And you brought money!!!” Stan exclaimed. The old codger swiped the chest from the kids and ran towards the table all while laughing maniacally. He plopped the box of valuables down, reveling at the sight of the sparkling doubloons. Ford looked on at his brother’s antics with mild concern.

The youngsters allowed Stan to have his fun with the treasure. They opted to inform Ford of their successful mission of retrieving the unicorn hair.

“We’ve got the unicorn hair you asked for!” Mabel cheerfully reported.

“We had to fight off those annoying pests, but it was worth it.” Dipper added.

“You should have been there, man!" Wendy exclaimed. "Mabel and Dipper each socked a unicorn in the face!"

“We also brought some unicorn tears, unicorn eyelashes…” Candy spoke while gesturing towards Grenda, who sported her new look.

“They finally gave us this treasure just to get rid of us!” Grenda shouted, gesturing towards the treasure chest that had captivated Stan.

“But I already called dibs on the horse-related possessions,” Pacifica said, holding up her own reward.

“It can’t be!” Ford gasped. The researcher led the kids toward the table. He took a second look at the magical unicorn hair Mabel held before his eyes scanned the pile of treasure. The researcher scooped up a handful of the gold coins and casually dropped it back in the pile. He was incredibly proud of his niblings and their friends for accomplishing the unthinkable.

Ford gave the youngsters an ecstatic smile. “This is a great day, children! With this unicorn hair, we’ll be able to completely shield the shack from Bill’s mind-reading tricks!”

“So it’s okay?” Mabel’s voice wobbled as she handed him a few thick strands of the unicorn hair. 

Ford smiled at his niece as he accepted her gift. “Better than okay, it’s perfect!” He then knelt down to speak with Mabel at eye level, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. “You’ve protected your family. You’re a good person Mabel.”

Mabel smiled at her Grunkle, tearing up at his words of validation. Without a second thought, she jumped onto Ford, catching him off guard and sending him onto the carpeted floor as she gave him the biggest hug she could muster. The elder researcher was shocked by Mabel’s sudden embrace, but he couldn’t help but reciprocate her affection as he gently wrapped his arms around his niece and pulled her in. Tears of joy fell down her face as she snuggled her great uncle's chest. 

 _Who cares about what some dumb unicorn said._ Mabel thought to herself. _If my family and friends believe that I’m a good person regardless of my flaws, then that’s the only thing that matters to me._


End file.
